ESPN's Amin El Hassan decided to open his big fat mouth and Tweet something stupid back on Thursday.
El Hassan works at ESPN as an "NBA Inisider," having once been a member of the Phoenix Suns front office. He was so good at that job that after being fired, no other NBA franchise has hired him. He decided to make a living in the world of "Hot Takes," calling himself the #HateHard King, and giving strident opinions about not only basketball but also other sports, including many things he knows nothing about. One of those things is apparently professional wrestling. Also possessing a human heart, empathy, and feelings. Amin El Hassan also knows nothing about those things.
Because when he saw a Tweet including a video of Kevin Owens' 8-year-old son Owen reacting to having just seen his father becoming Champion of the Universe, he just had to respond.
Get it?
It's funny, cuz he's a dick.
Setting aside that we, as wrestling fans, can get a little touchy when some one blows the "it's fake, you know" dog whistle, and disregarding the reports that Owen Steen is autistic, this is just a mean thing to say in response to seeing a video of a son who is overwhelmingly proud of his father.
Like, thanks Amin. We all know it's scripted. It's even likely that young Owen might know that too. But, and I know this is hard for you, try not to think of wrestling as compared to sports. Think of it this way: Kevin Owens just got the biggest promotion of his life, and is now the face of a huge company, with all the opportunities that provides. I don't know if you're a father, because you don't even have a wikipedia page because you're not a bigtime enough ESPN analyst to have one of those, but I'll bet you're a son. And if your dad just got a huge promotion, live on television, with millions of people watching, and then the next day you got to go to school with your dad's face on your lunchbox ...
... then I'd have to bet you'd think that was pretty cool.
No? You wouldn't have thought that? Because you're a dick? With no feelings, empathy or human emotion? Just a Hot Take machine with a black dark hole where his heart should be? Okay then.
But eventually somebody did get to Amin El Hassan, and forced him to apologize. No word on whether that was his co-worker Jonathan Coachman or maybe the WWE talked to their new partner ESPN and the suits upstairs called him in for a little convo, or whether he just realized that he was being a colossal, irredeemable dick, but he did apologize.
Kind of.
He "sincerely" apologized.
He was totally "sincere."
We believe you, Amin.
"Sincerely."
He still thinks we were all upset because he insulted our beloved wrasslin', and not because he took a shot at an 8-year-old boy's unconditional love for his father, but whatever.
He tweeted a "sincere" apology, and that's going to have to be enough, because there has been no suspension levvied by ESPN, and there probably won't be.
Kevin Owens, for his part, had only this to say.
Yes, you do champ. At wrestling, at fatherhood, at life.
Amin El Hassan, though? I think he only wins at #HatingHard.
"Sincerely."
